Richard Šmehlík Explained

Position:	Defence
Shoots:	Left
Height Ft:	6
Height In:	4
Weight Lb:	222
Ntl Team:	CZE
Birth Date:	23 January 1970
Birth Place:	Ostrava, Czechoslovakia
Draft:	97th overall
Draft Year:	1990
Draft Team:	Buffalo Sabres
Career Start:	1988
Career End:	2003

Richard Šmehlík (born 23 January 1970) is a Czech former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted in the fifth round, 97th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft.

Šmehlík joined the Sabres for the 1992–93 season, and played there for nine seasons. He left via free agency for the Atlanta Thrashers before the 2002–03 season.

At the trade deadline of the 2002–03 season, Šmehlík was traded to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for a draft pick. Šmehlík would go on to win the Stanley Cup that season with the Devils. He retired following the season.

In his NHL career, Šmehlík appeared in 644 games, tallying 49 goals and adding 146 assists. He also appeared in 88 playoff games, scoring 1 goal and recording 14 assists.

Awards

Bronze Medal at 1992 Winter Olympics (with Czechoslovakia)
Gold Medal at 1998 Winter Olympics (with Czech Republic)
2003 Stanley Cup champion (with New Jersey Devils)

Trivia

The draft pick the Sabres used to select Šmehlík was acquired from the New York Rangers in exchange for Lindy Ruff. Ruff would later become the Sabres' head coach, and Šmehlík would play under him for five seasons.
Richard and his wife, Martina, have two daughters: Adela and Jessica.
Šmehlík appears on the cover of the Czech version of the NHL 2000 video game.
During the 1999 Stanley Cup finals he was described as "like a human hovercraft... hard to get around!"

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

			Regular season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP				PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1987–88	TJ Vítkovice	CSSR Jr	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	TJ Vítkovice	CSSR-2	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	TJ Vítkovice	CSSR	28	2	3	5	12	—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	TJ Vítkovice	CSSR	44	4	3	7	—	7	1	1	2	—
1990–91	ASD Dukla Jihlava	CSSR	51	4	2	6	22	7	0	1	1	0
1991–92	TJ Vítkovice	CSSR	35	8	5	13	—	—	—	—	—	—
1992–93	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	80	4	27	31	59	8	0	4	4	2
1993–94	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	84	14	27	41	69	7	0	2	2	10
1994–95	HC Vítkovice	CZE	13	5	2	7	12	—	—	—	—	—
1994–95	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	39	4	7	11	46	5	0	0	0	2
1996–97	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	62	11	19	30	43	12	0	2	2	4
1997–98	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	72	3	17	20	62	15	0	2	2	6
1998–99	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	72	3	11	14	44	21	0	3	3	10
1999–00	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	64	2	9	11	50	5	1	0	1	0
2000–01	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	56	3	12	15	4	10	0	1	1	4
2001–02	Buffalo Sabres	NHL	60	3	6	9	22	—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL	43	2	9	11	16	—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	New Jersey Devils	NHL	12	0	2	2	0	5	0	0	0	2
CSSR totals			158	18	13	31	—	14	1	2	3	—
NHL totals			644	49	146	195	415	88	1	14	15	40

International

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Richard Šmehlík".

Year	Team	Event	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1988	Czechoslovakia	EJC	5	1	1	2	4
1990	Czechoslovakia	WJC	7	0	1	1	4
1991		CC	5	0	1	1	2
1991	Czechoslovakia	WC	8	1	2	3	8
1992	Czechoslovakia	OG	6	0	1	1	2
1992	Czechoslovakia	WC	8	0	0	0	4
1998		OG	6	0	1	1	4
2002	Czech Republic	OG	4	0	0	0	4
Junior totals			12	1	2	3	8
Senior totals			37	1	5	6	24